U-boat Commands

Karl-Heinz Moehle began his naval career in April 1930. After some months on the battleship Schleswig Holstein, he transferred to the U-boat force in March 1936, and in October 1937 commissioned U-20. He made six patrols, mostly in the North Sea, and sank eight ships.

He left U-20 in January 1940 and four months later commissioned U-123, one of the most famous U-boats of the war.

Moehle's second patrol in the North Atlantic was outstanding. On the morning of 23 November, 1940 he attacked the convoy OB-244 and in five hours sank five ships with a total of 23,084 tons. Due to damage sustained in a submerged collision with a sunken ship, U-123 was then forced to return to base. After four patrols Moehle turned over command of U-123 to Kptlt. Reinhard Hardegen.

From June 1941 to the end of war Moehle was the commander both of the
5th flotilla and of the U-boat base at Kiel. In June 1945 he was arrested, and in the autumn of 1946 tried for passing on the Laconia order to the U-boat commanders. He was condemned to five years imprisonment, being released in November 1949.

Legend We have a picture of this vessel.[Mine] indicates the vessel was hit by a mine laid by said U-boat.

About ranks and decorationsRanks shown in italics are our database inserts based on the rank dates of his crew comrades. The officers of each crew would normally have progressed through the lower ranks at the same rate.